Tuesday, 26 July 2011

Download: Guapo Feo drops a different kind of moombahsoul

We've all been loving David Heartbreak's Moombahsoul comps, haven't we? Of course we have – they're as slick as a Brylcreem otter making his move on a sexy lady otter during the BP oil disaster, and they've been a welcome antidote to the dominance of the Dirty Dutch sound and its sometimes-meh derivatives that tend to boss the moombahton scene. It's also provided a much-needed stepping stone to an expansive, more developed use of melody and texture that's essential if this thing is to last beyond the point when the hipsters sell up and leave (freebie joke that you'll have already heard 23 times, courtesy of somebody or other: hear about the hipster who burned his tongue? He ate his pizza before it was cool).

Yeah, so we're all about the moombahsoul, agreed? Then say thank you to New Yorker Guapo Feo for reminding us that soul music is also about passion, raw emotion and dizzying highs and lows with his edit of Nothing But A Heartache by The Flirtations, which just happens to genuinely be my joint all-time favourite Northern Soul tune (Chapter 5's You Can't Mean It is the other, if you're bothered). Given that Northern Soul is so raw, and the prodcution on the original track was so warm and full of life, Guapo's edit could have easily gone very wrong. It doesn't - hear it for yourself...